JACKSON FLORES / RIO DE JANEIRO
Recent safety incidents convince Brazilian airline to replace half of its Fokker 100 fleet with Airbus A319s/A320s
Brazilian carrier TAM has unveiled a wide-ranging restructuring plan after reporting a first half loss of $63.7 million, which will see its domestic network trimmed, staff redundancies and the withdrawal of part of its Fokker 100 fleet.
TAM says it will progressively return 21 of its 49 Fokker 100s to their owners as their leases expire, with the aircraft due to be withdrawn by the second quarter of next year. Deliveries of Airbus A319s and A320s will be accelerated to fill the void.
The move follows a spate of accidents and incidents involving the airline's Fokker 100s in recent weeks, which resulted in the loss of one aircraft and significant damage to a second (Flight International, 10-16 September). This has tarnished the aircraft's public image in Brazil, and reportedly prompted TAM's decision to phase-out nearly half of its Fokker 100 fleet.
The airline will receive one more A319 and an A320 this month, while a further four A319s and two A320s will arrive in December. Four more A319s are due in the first quarter of next year by which time the airline will have a fleet of 57 Airbuses, including 46 A319/A320s and 11 A330-200 widebodies.
Nine domestic routes will be cut, along with 450 staff - 158 pilots and 300 flight attendants - which represents a 6.6% reduction.
The heavily devalued Brazilian Real is blamed for the bulk of TAM's recent financial woes.
Source: Flight International
